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Running a Game Session
See also: Gamemastering After everything is prepared, and everyone sits down at the table, you're on. It's your show. Here are some things you should consider, at the table and before you ever get there, to help make the game run as smoothly as possible. Knowing the Players Normally, but not always, the GM is in charge of inviting players to play in his or her game. If this is the case, it's your responsibility to know and understand each of these people well enough that you can be reasonably sure that they'll all get along, work well together, and enjoy the sort of game you run. A lot of this has to do with playing style. Ultimately, you have to know the kind of game your players want to play. With players new to the game, or a newly formed group, this may take a while to define. Recognize that while you're in charge, it's really everybody's game. The players are all there, coming back session after session, because they trust that you'll help them have a fun and rewarding experience. Table Rules One thing that will help everyone, players and GM alike, to all get along will be establishing a set of rules- rules that have nothing to do with the actual game but that govern what happens with the people around the table. The following are some "Table Rules" issues you'll need to deal with eventually. It's best to come up with the answers before you start a regular campaign. You can establish these yourself, or you can work them out with your players. No-Show Players Sometimes a regular player can't show up for a game session. The GM and group are faced with the question of what to do with his or her hero. There are several possibilities: * Someone else runs that hero for the session (In addition to their own hero). This is easiest on you, but sometimes the fill-in player resents the task or the replaced player is unhappy with that happens to the hero in his or her absence. * You run the hero, doing your best to make the decisions that you think the hero's player would make. This might actually be the best solution, but don't do it if running a hero and running the game at the same time is too much for you and hurts the whole session. * The hero, like the player, can't be present for this adventure. This only works in certain In-Game situations, but if it makes sense for the character to be absent, that's a handy way to take the hero out of the action for a game session. Ideally, the reason for the hero's absence is one that allows him or her to jump back in with a minimum of fuss when the player is available again. (The hero may have some other commitment, for instance.) * The character fades into the background for this session. This is probably the least desirable solution, because it strains everyone's suspension of disbelief. Recognize that players come and go. Someone moves away, another gets busy, and yet another grows tired of the game. They'll quit. At the same time, new players will want to join. Make sure to always keep the group at a size that you're comfortable with. The normal-sized group has four or five players (Not including the GM). However, some groups are as small as two, and others as large as seven or more. You can also play the game one-on-one, with just one player and one GM, but that's a very different sort of play experience. (It's a good way to handle special campaign ideas, such as a Jedi Master's mentorship of a young Padawan learner.) If you can, try to find out from the players how long they're interested in playing. Try to get a modest commitment from them to show up on a regular basis during that time. Integrating New Players When someone new joins the campaign, his or her hero needs to be integrated into the game. At the same time, the player needs to be integrated into the group. Make sure that a new player knows the House Rules and the Table Rules, as well as the game rules. Rules Discussions It's probably best if players don't question your rulings or established rules, propose new House Rules, or conduct discussions on other aspects of the game (Aside from what's immediately at hand) during the game itself. Such matters are best addressed at the beginning or end of the session. Jokes and Off-Topic Discussions There are always funny things to be said, movie quotes, good gossip, and other conversations that crop up during the game, whether they're inspired by what's going on in the session, or completely extraneous. Decide for yourself (And as a group) how much is too much. Remember that this is a game and people are there to have fun, yet at the same time keep the focus on the action of the heroes so the whole session doesn't pass in idle talk. Working with the Players Two players want the same newfound item. Each thinks their character can use it best, or deserves it for what they've done. If the players can't find a way to decide who gets it, you will have to arbitrate or impose a solution. Or, worse, one player is angry with another player for something that happened earlier that day outside the game, so now his hero tries to harass or even kill the other player's hero. The GM shouldn't sit back and let this happen. It's up to you to step in and help resolve conflicts like that. As GM, you're both a master of ceremonies and an umpire during the game. Talk with the arguing players together or separately outside the game session and try to resolve the conflict. Make it as clear and nicely as you can that you can't let anyone's argument ruin the game for other players, and you won't tolerate real-world hard feelings affecting the way characters within the game react to each other. Another case is when a player gets really mad when you rule against him. Again, be firm but kind in telling them that you try your best to be fair. You can't have angry outbursts spoiling everyone else's fun. Settle the matter outside the game session. Listen to the player's complaints, but remember that you're the final arbiter. By agreeing to play in your game, that player has also agreed to accept your decisions as GM. Sometimes one player's actions ruin the fun for everyone. An obnoxious, irresponsible, troublemaking player can make the game really unpleasant. Sometimes they gets others' heroes killed because of their actions. Other times they stop the game with arguments, tantrums, or off-topic conversations. Or they might keep everyone from playing by being late or not showing up at all. Ultimately, you should get rid of this player. Just don't invite them next time. Don't play the game with someone that you wouldn't enjoy spending time with in another social setting. Decide how many players you want in your game and stick with it. If someone leaves, try to get a new player. If someone new wants to join an already full group, resist the urge to let him or her in unless you're sure you can handle the increased number of players. If there are too many players, consider dividing them into two groups that play at different times. If there are too few, you might want to recruit more or have each player play more than one hero. (It's good to have at least four heroes on a mission team.) If one player dominates the game and monopolizes your time with her hero's actions, the other players will quickly grow dissatisfied. Make sure everyone gets his or her turn. Also, make sure each player gets to make his or her own decisions. Overeager or overbearing players sometimes try to tell the others what to do. If one player insists on controlling everything, talk to him outside the game session and explain that his actions are making things less fun for everyone. Metagame Thinking "I figure that there'll be a lever on the other side of the chasm that extends the bridge," a player says to the others, "Because the GM would never create a trap that we couldn't deactivate somehow." That's Metagame Thinking. Any time the players base hero actions on logic that depends on the fact they're playing a game, they're "Metagaming." This activity should always be discouraged, because it detracts from real roleplaying and spoils the suspension of disbelief. Surprise your players by foiling this mode of thinking. Maybe there is a lever on the other side of the chasm- but it might be malfunctioning. Keep your players on their toes, and don't let them second-guess you. Tell them to think in terms of the game universe, not of you as the GM. In the game universe, someone put in the trench on the Death Star for a purpose. Figure out the hows and whys for what they have done. The heroes will need to do the same. In short, where possible, encourage the players to employ In-Game logic. Confronted with the situation given above, an appropriate response from a clever hero is, "I figure there'll be a lever on the other side of the chasm that extends the bridge, because you'd have to be able to cross from either side." In fact, this is wonderful- it shows smart thinking as well as verisimilitude in the game universe. Recapping "Last time, you had just discovered the secret entrance to the Imperial shield generator on The Forest Moon of Endor. We ended the session with you on a nearby ridge overlooking the entrance. Arani suffered a terrible wound while fighting the biker scouts. Vor'en wanted to go straight to the entrance and shoot it out, but the rest of you talked him into helping you find a suitable place to watch and plan. What do you want to do?" In the middle of an ongoing campaign, recapping activity from the previous session at the start of a new session often helps establish the mood and reminds everyone what was going on. In most games, heroes continue what they're doing from day to day (Or even hour to hour), but most players (In the real world) have several days of real time between game sessions. Some players might forget important details that will affect their decisions if they don't get reminders. Of course, that means that you, as the GM, need to keep notes of what happens so you don't forget, either. At the very least, jot down a few sentences about what's going on at the end of each game session. Leave your notes where you can find them right away at the beginning of the next session. You'll probably find that, as the GM, you tend to think about the game between sessions more than the other players do, and thus you'll remember more details. You'll quickly get to the point where you won't forget what happened in past sessions, especially if the adventures you're currently working on build off those events. Setting the Pace The pace of the game determines how much time you spend on a given activity or action taken by the heroes. Different players enjoy different paces. Some search every room they come across, but some think doing that is not worth the game time. Some roleplay every encounter, while some want to skip on to the "Good Bits." Do your best to please the group, but when in doubt, keep things moving. Don't feel that it's necessary to play out rest periods, replenishing supplies, or carrying out daily tasks. Sometimes that level of detail is an opportunity to develop heroes, but most of the time it's unimportant. You should decide ahead of time, if possible, how long the playing session will last. This not only allows everyone to make plans around the game but also enables you to judge about how much time is left during a session and pace things accordingly. You should always end a session at a good stopping point. Three to four hours is a good length for an evening game. Some people like to play longer sessions, usually on a weekend. Even if you normally play for shorter periods, sometimes it's fun to run a longer "Marathon" session. Referencing Rules Try to look at the rules as little as possible during a game. Although the rules are there to help you, paging through the book- or referencing this Wikia- can slow things down. Look something up whenever necessary (And mark things you'll need to refer to again with a bookmark), but recall a rule from memory when you can. Even if you're not exactly correct in your recollection, the game keeps moving. Cheating (And Player Perceptions) Terrible things can happen in the game because the dice just go awry. Everything might be going fine, when suddenly the players have a run of bad luck. A round later, half the heroes are down for the count and the other half almost certainly can't take on the opponents that remain. If everyone does, the campaign might very well end then and there, and that's bad for everyone. Should you stand by and watch the heroes get slaughtered? Or should you "Cheat" and have the opponents run off, or fudge the die rolls so that the heroes still miraculously win in the end? There are really two issues at hand. Do you cheat? The answer: GMs really can't cheat. You're the umpire, and what you say goes. As such, it's certainly within your right to sway things one way or another to keep people happy or keep things running smoothly. It's no fun losing a beloved hero because he fell down a flight of stairs. A good rule of thumb is that a hero shouldn't die in a minor way by some fluke of the dice unless he or she was doing something really stupid at the time. However, you might not feel that it's right or even fun unless you obey the same rules the players do. Sometimes the heroes get lucky and kill an opponent you had planned to have around for a long time. By the same token, sometimes things go against the heroes and disaster befalls them. Both the GM and players take the bad with the good. That's a perfectly acceptable way to play, and if there's a default method of running a game, that's it. Just as important an issue, however, is whether the players realize that you bend the rules. Even if you decide that sometimes it's okay to fudge a little to let the heroes survive so the game can continue, don't let the players in on this decision. It's important to the game that they believe they're always in danger. Consciously or subconsciously, if they believe you'll never let bad things happen to their heroes, they'll change the way they act. With no element of risk, victory will seem less sweet. And if thereafter something bad does happen to a hero, the player may believe you're out to get him. If he feels you saved other heroes when they were in trouble, he might become disaffected with the game. When Bad Things Happen to Good Heroes Heroes suffer setbacks, lose prized Equipment, and sometimes even die. It's all part of the game, almost as much as success, gaining levels, earning rewards, and attaining greatness. But players don't always take it well when something bad happens to their heroes. Remind players that bad things happen sometimes. Challenges are what the game's all about. Mention that setbacks are an opportunity to succeed later. Reassure the player of the dead hero that here are lots of opportunities for new hero types she hasn't tried yet. The dead hero's surviving allies will tell tales of their fallen comrade for years to come. The game goes on. It's rare (But possible) that an entire group of heroes can be wiped out. In such a case, don't let it end the whole game. Encourage the players to try new heroes, perhaps of a Class or Species they haven't played before. Even that's not really so bad- in fact, it's an opportunity for a dramatic change of pace. This new group of heroes might even be charged with retrieving the bodies of the fallen heroes for honorable burial. Ending Things Try not to end a game session in the middle of an encounter. Leaving everything hanging in the midst of combat is a terrible way to end a session. It's difficult to keep track of things such as Initiative Order, In-Game effects, and other round-by-round details between sessions. The only exception to this is ending with a cliffhanger. A cliffhanger ending is one in which things end just as something monumental happens or some surprising turn of events occurs. The purpose is to keep players intrigued and excited until the next session. A cliffhanger ends a session right before an encounter begins, prior to Initiative checks, and you pick up the action with Initiative checks in the next game session. If someone was missing from that session, and you had their hero leave for a while, make sure that there's a way to work his hero back in next time. Sometimes, even in a cliffhanger, this can work out well. The hero might come racing into the thick of things to help out his beleaguered friends and help save the day. Allow some time - a few minutes will do - at the end of the session to have everyone discuss what happened. Listen to their reactions and secretly leave more of what they like and don't like. Reinforce what you thought were good decisions and smart actions on their part (Unless such information gives too much away for the adventure). Always end things positively. You may want to award Experience Points at the end of each session, or you might wait until the end of each adventure. That's up to you. However, the standard approach is to give out experience points at the end of each adventure, so the players whose heroes go up a level have time between adventures to choose new Talents, Feats, and so forth.